BUMPS 

AND HIS BUDDIES 


MARIE HELENE GULBRANSON 







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BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 

MARIE HELENE GULBRANSEN 






























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He Never Had Heard of a Bridge of Fish 




































































































Bumps 

And His Buddies 


BY 

MARIE HELENE GULBRANSEN 

it 


WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY 

JAMES W. BURBANK 



DORRANCC fir COMPANY 

PHILADELPHIA 


Copyright 1924 
Dorrance Sc Company lne 




Manufactured in the United State* of America 


DEC 1934 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Bumps and the Magic Purse. 11 

The Voyage to No-Such Land. 23 

Squeedinks and the Cod Liver Oil. 35 

Tom Now-You-See-Him-Now-You-Don’t . 45 

Colette, the Little Dancing Girl. 55 

Jerry and the Wishing-Ring. 65 

Patsy Ann in Birdland. 75 
















LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 


Facing Page 

He Had Never Heard of a Bridge 

of Fish. Frontispiece 

Our Island Is Swimming Away With Us... 24 
I Never Did Think This Tree Was Big 

Enough. 36 

All They Could See Was the Skates. 48 

Only a Tiny Bunch of Whiskers Remained. 56 

The Savages Ran in Terror. 68 

A Queer Bird Flew Close to Patsy Ann.... 76 


























# 
















BUMPS AND 
THE MAGIC PURSE 












■4 














BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 

Bumps and the Magic Purse 

Once there was a little boy named Bumps, 
a name he was given because of the many times 
he fell down, bumping his little legs and head. 
He was a roly-poly little chap, a bit too heavy 
for his height, and when he started off to work 
or play he was usually in such a hurry that 
he tumbled over. Now Bumps lived in a wee 
hut ’way off in the country, with his mother, 
who was quite poor. In the mornings he would 
hustle out to chop wood and gather wild berries 
for their breakfast, always wishing that he 
could find a pot of gold to make his mother 
rich and happy. Finally he decided to start 
out into the big world to seek his fortune, and 
while his mother hated to have her little son 
leave her, she felt sure he would be successful 
because he had always been such a good boy. 

So one bright sunny morning Bumps, after 
kissing his mother goodbye, set out on his long 

[ 11 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


journey with a rabbit’s foot in his pocket for 
luck and only a little lunch to eat on the way. 
He walked for miles and miles in the direction 
of the city until his little legs grew very, very 
tired. So he sat down to rest and to eat his 
luncheon, only to find that he had devoured 
it, bit by bit, as he trudged along. It was get¬ 
ting toward the end of the afternoon when he 
suddenly saw a little brown rabbit with a white 
tail hopping along ahead of him. He longed 
for the big gun which he had left behind in 
the woodshed, for he knew that he must soon 
have more food and he thought the rabbit 
would make a good supper. But just then he 
spied a stone with which he thought he might 
kill Mr. Rabbit. Bumps threw the stone with 
all his might, just missing him by inches, and 
the rabbit, instead of running away, scam¬ 
pered right up to him, and sitting up straight, 
held out one little foot. Then it occurred to 
Bumps that here he was carrying a rabbit’s 
foot for good luck, and yet he had tried to 
bring bad luck upon this poor little creature. 
With tears in his eyes he gathered the rabbit 
in his arms, calling him, “Dear little brown 
112 ] 


BUMPS AND THE MAGIC PURSE 


Bunny!” From that moment Bumps and the 
Bunny were the best of friends, and journeyed 
on together. 

It was growing dusk by this time and 
Bumps was so hungry that he began hunting 
about in his pockets for crumbs of his luncheon. 
When the little brown Bunny saw him do this, 
and also saw that Bumps didn’t find anything 
to eat in his pocket, he began running about, 
pausing every now and then to sniff the air 
with his little funny nose. At last he dashed 
off at a great pace, and Bumps saw him busily 
scratching and digging in the ground. When 
he caught up with him he saw that Bunny had 
uncovered a hidden basketful of the most deli¬ 
cious things to eat, which a picnic party had 
buried away in the cool, clean earth for another 
day’s luncheon. Bumps and Bunny sat down 
under a tree for supper, and Bumps fed his 
little friend all the lettuce out of the sand¬ 
wiches. 

It was now quite dark and the two travelers 
felt very drowsy, so they curled up close to 
each other and fell sound asleep. Bumps was 
dreaming happily about his return home laden 

[13] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


with riches, when he felt something nibbling 
at his ear, and awakened to find that Bunny 
was trying to tell him something. He couldn’t 
make out what the little fellow was trying to 
say, until he heard a deep growl among the 
trees, and saw a big shadow in the moonlight. 
He was terribly frightened, but knew that the 
wisest thing to do was remain perfectly still. 
To his surprise, the Bunny scampered off right 
under the nose of an enormous bear, making 
all the noise he could in the dead leaves. Of 
course, the bear ran after him through the 
woods, which was exactly what clever Bunny 
had planned, while Bumps stayed just where 
he was, breathless with fright and excitement. 
There was a great crashing and a terrific growl¬ 
ing, and then all was still! After a minute or 
two Bunny reappeared, tumbling tail over ears 
with laughter, and sitting up on his hind legs, 
motioned Bumps to follow him. The two set 
off together through the underbrush, and all 
the while the frightful growlings grew louder 
and louder, until they came to where they saw 
old Mr. Bear stuck tight in a hole in the ground, 
into which he had vainly tried to follow Bunny, 
1141 


BUMPS AND THE MAGIC PURSE 


who had cleverly led him in and then escaped 
through the hole’s back door. Bumps and 
Bunny left the bear stuck securely in the 
ground, fairly growling his head off, and went 
back to sleep. Bumps felt fonder than ever of 
Bunny, for he felt that the little animal’s quick 
wit and quick action had saved his life. 

In the morning the two friends proceeded 
on their way, walking as fast as they could, for 
they were in great haste to make their fortunes. 
Occasionally they met a good farmer who gave 
them apples and cabbages to eat. They walked 
and walked all day long; sometimes Bunny ran 
ahead over the roofs of the hills, but he always 
returned to see if Bumps was following him. 
And all the time Bumps’ little legs were grow¬ 
ing stronger and stronger, so that he seldom 
fell and hardly felt tired at all, which made 
him very proud. Finally, Bunny vanished 
over the top of the very last, highest hill, and 
though Bumps looked and looked for him, he 
didn’t come back. When Bumps caught up 
with him he found him sitting on the doorstep 
of a great river, wondering how they would 
ever get across. Alas! Poor Bumps himself 

[15] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


could see no way to go on, and feared that 
they would have to turn back. While they 
stood sadly looking at the deep water as it 
went rushing by them, there was a great splash¬ 
ing and rippling all about, and hundreds of 
fish, of every kind and color in the whole 
world, poked their heads up above the surface, 
just exactly as if they were trying to tell the 
travelers something. Then Bumps and Bunny 
noticed that the fish were floating side by side, 
packed tightly together all the way across the 
river in a long, glistening silver bridge. Bumps 
had never heard of anyone crossing a river on 
a bridge of fish, but he stepped boldly out, with 
Bunny in his arms. And when he had safely 
reached the other side, without even so much 
as getting the soles of his feet damp, he thanked 
the fish for their kindness by digging hundreds 
of worms for them (with the help of Bunny’s 
sharp little claws). As fast as they could dig 
they threw the worms into the river, and just 
as fast they disappeared into the fishes’ mouths. 

Then the two travelers resumed their jour¬ 
ney, telling each other how fortunate they had 
been thus far. They went on and on, until 
[ 16 ] 


BUMPS AND THE MAGIC PURSE 

Bumps thought they must be approaching the 
city. They were pushing their way through 
a little thicket—Bunny hurrying on ahead, as 
usual—when Bumps heard the hiss of a snake. 
He looked around quickly to see where it came 
from, and right in front of him on the ground 
he saw a poor little bird held spellbound by the 
glittering eye of an ugly snake, so frightened 
that it could neither move nor fly. Without 
stopping to think that the snake might injure 
him, Bumps seized a big stick and killed it. 
Instantly the poor little bird was transformed 
into a beautiful Fairy, not much bigger than 
a robin. She told Bumps that a cruel Witch 
had put an enchantment upon her, forcing her 
to live in the body of a helpless little bird, at 
the mercy of all the beasts of the forest, until 
she should be rescued by some kind person. 
The Fairy was so grateful to Bumps for her 
release that she made him a present of a beau¬ 
tiful purse, in which was just one shining gold 
coin. This was the first money Bumps had 
ever had for his very own and he felt that his 
good fortune was coming true at last. Thank¬ 
ing the Fairy politely, he skipped merrily on, 

[171 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


overtaking Bunny, and soon the two friends 
were within sight of the big city. 

* * * * * * * 

The first person Bumps and Bunny met on 
their arrival in the city was a man selling ice 
cream, and although he hated to part with the 
gold piece, Bumps could not resist buying two 
fat cones. As they walked along eating them 
and gazing at all the wonderful things about 
them, Bumps’ toes suddenly began to feel very 
cold. Glancing down he saw that some of the 
ice cream had dropped through a hole in his 
shoe, which was badly worn from the long jour¬ 
ney. Right across the street there was a fine 
big shoe store, and as Bumps stood wishing he 
had a pair of handsome new shoes, imagine his 
delight and surprise at suddenly feeling the 
smooth, hard surface of another coin in the 
purse the Fairy had given him! At first he 
thought there might have been two gold-pieces 
in the purse when the Fairy gave it to him 
and he had been so stupid as to have only dis¬ 
covered one of them. But when, after paying 
for the shoes, he felt still another coin, he knew 
[ 18 ] 


BUMPS AND THE MAGIC PURSE 


that he had been given a wonderful gift indeed, 
and that the purse was truly a magic one, which 
would never become empty. 

It was now an easy matter for Bumps to 
buy all the pretty things he had planned to take 
back to his dear mother, of which there were 
so many that he had to buy a great balloon 
to which was fastened a basket big enough to 
hold everything. And Bumps and Bunny and 
all the gifts purchased with the Fairy’s money 
sailed away in it, over the wide river and all 
the hills, until they came in sight of the little 
home. Bumps landed the balloon in his own 
front yard, and he and Bunny rushed in to 
tell his mother the story of his good fortune. 
She was delighted with all the presents he 
brought her, and because they were never able 
to empty the magic purse of its last shining 
gold-piece, Bumps and his mother always had 
everything they wanted, and lived happily 
together forever after! 


[ 19 ] 





THE VOYAGE 
TO NO-SUCH LAND 



The Voyage to No-Such Land 

Whoops and Putty-Nose were at the sea¬ 
side, playing on the shore of a beautiful, big 
blue bay—a bay which was really part of the 
big, beautiful blue ocean, where their father and 
mother had taken them for the summer. 
Whoops was a very pretty little girl with long 
yellow curls, and big brown eyes which were 
almost always wide open with surprise. She had 
been given her funny nickname because she 
always cried “Whoops!” when she saw any¬ 
thing that pleased her, and as almost every¬ 
thing pleased her she was crying “Whoops!” 
most of the time. Putty-Nose was her brother 
—a jolly, fat little fellow with a round face 
and a quaint snub nose in the exact middle of 
it so covered with big brown freckles it looked 
just like a lump of putty. Whoops and Putty- 
Nose had a very small tent, buckets, shovels, 
and a pop-gun, and had been playing that they 
were Robinson Crusoe and his good man 
Friday, cast away on a desert island. But after 
a while they got tired—it was hard work 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


imagining oneself quite deserted when one 
could see home all the while! So they sat down 
by the water to rest and to think up some 
more interesting game. 

All of a sudden Putty-Nose exclaimed, 
“Whoopsie! Look at that big, round, flat rock 
out in the water! Let’s wade out to it and we 
can pretend its a really truly island!” 

Whoops was always ready for fun, so they 
waded out, carrying all their playthings in 
their arms with them; they pitched their teiit 
in the very middle of the rock, and there they 
were, really on an island, with water all around. 
It was ever so much cooler than on the beach, 
and much more exciting, so they sat down to 
enjoy life and plan what to do next. Whoops 
had just noticed that their rock was all marked 
out in a diamond pattern, something like a 
giant checkerboard, only not colored, when she 
felt it begin to move smoothly and slowly 
through the sparkling blue waters. Whoops 
“whooped” in her very best manner, crying 
out to her brother, “Hold on tight, Putty- 
Nose! Our island is swimming away with us!” 

And sure enough, the island was moving 

[241 



Our Island Is Swimming Away With Us 








































































































































































































THE VOYAGE TO NO-SUCH LAND 


off to sea, making tiny ripples like those that 
follow in the wake of a boat. The children 
didn’t know what to do; they had never heard 
of a swimming island, and they had just about 
decided to become very, very frightened indeed, 
when a big, long, ugly head lifted itself up over 
the western shore of the island, turned, and 
looked back at them. It was exactly like the 
head of a turtle they had once seen, only a 
great many times larger, and although it was 
quite hideously ugly, it had a kindly humorous 
expression around its mouth and a merry 
twinkle in its eye. 

“I’m Old Flipperoo, the sea-turtle,” it said 
by way of polite introduction, “and I’m per¬ 
fectly harmless, so you mustn’t be afraid. You 
can stay on my back and I’ll carry you across 
the ocean to a place I know, and show you all 
the queer and wonderful things that grow there. 
Then I’ll bring you back safe and sound in 
time for supper. How does that sound?” 

Now of course, Whoops and Putty-Nose 
said it was the one thing they wanted to do 
most of all, so Old Flipperoo tucked his head 
away out of sight again and set himself to 

[ 25 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


paddling away at a great rate. The mariners 
were soon so far out to sea that they could no 
longer see land, and when they passed close by 
the great sea-going vessels and trans-oceanic 
liners, all the people on their decks ran to the 
rail to look at the queer flat boat and its very 
youthful passengers. Everybody waved and 
called greetings to the children, and the chil¬ 
dren waved back, and shouted “Ship ahoy!” 
which they knew was the polite thing to do. 

After a long, long voyage they sighted a 
land almost completely covered with the queer¬ 
est looking trees. Flipperoo swam into a quiet 
bay and waddled right up on the sand, so that 
Whoops and Putty-Nose were able to step 
ashore without even wetting their feet. “I’ll 
lie here in the sun and take a nap,” said the 
turtle, “and you children start off on a journey 
of discovery. Nothing in this strange country 
will hurt you, although you will be surprised 
at many of the things you will see. Only be 
sure to come back here to me when you hear 
the Tick-Tock bird calling, ‘Five o’clock!’, or 
we’ll all be late for supper.” 

So Whoops and Putty-Nose left their won- 
126 ] 


THE VOYAGE TO NO-SUCH LAND 


derful new friend dozing in the hot sand and 
set off, hand in hand, along the path which led 
up among the trees. Now they understood 
why the island had looked so funny when they 
were approaching in on the turtle’s back, for 
all the trees grew upside-down, their roots in 
the air, and the figs, cocoanuts, and bananas 
on the ground, where they could easily be 
picked. They decided to gather some of the 
fruit on the way back to take home to their 
father and mother, and went on up the winding 
path. The air was full of Jujube and Lollypop 
birds, which flew ahead of them calling, 
“Whoops and Putty-Nose have come to visit 
us!” 

All at once they came upon a colony of 
Chase-Tails, little striped animals with a very 
sweet tooth. Instead of regular tails they had 
sticks of peppermint candy, which they were 
forever chasing round and round, in order to 
satisfy their enormous appetites for candy. 
Each Chase-Tail was chasing his tail for dear 
life around a little bush, until every bush in 
sight had a Chase-Tail lying around it like a 
doughnut, holding its peppermint tail fast in 

[ 27 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


its mouth, and nibbling away happily at the 
candy. Just as Whoops and Putty-Nose were 
wondering what would happen when the tails 
were all eaten up, the Whispering-Tell-Tale 
bird flew down and explained that new tails 
would grow by tea-time next Thursday. It 
was then only Monday, and the Chase-Tails 
had to make their peppermint candy tails last 
for four whole days, or go hungry. 

Further on, in a cool little dell, they found 
the Ice Cream Soda plant in full bloom, covered 
with great white cup-shaped flowers, like Easter 
lilies. All you had to do was pick one of these 
flowers, wish very hard for your favorite flavor, 
and instantly it was full of cold, delicious ice 
cream soda. After sampling as many kinds 
as they could think of, Whoops and Putty-Nose 
continued their journey, and were just crossing 
a bridge over a tiny stream when they were 
brought to a standstill by a strange sound. It 
came from the water, and, on looking closer, 
the children discovered a school of Gurgling 
Gonces swimming in a quiet pool under the 
bridge. They ran down on the bank to see 
and get a closer look, and were amazed to find 

[ 28 ] 


THE VOYAGE TO NO-SUCH LAND 


that a Gurgling Gonce is exactly like a small, 
red rubber hot water bottle, and makes the same 
noise a water bottle does when shaken. Putty- 
Nose waded carefully into the stream and suc¬ 
ceeded in catching one of the funny fish. It 
seemed not at all afraid—and very, very warm, 
and it had just one big, round eye in the end 
where the stopper of the water bottle would 
be. It looked so pleadingly into his face and 
seemed so helpless that Putty-Nose felt sorry 
for it and put it back in the water right away. 
“Gurgle-Gurgle,” said the grateful Gurgling 
Gonce, very politely, and swam off to join its 
brothers and sisters. 

At last, just as Whoops and Putty-Nose 
were beginning to feel very hungry, they 
smelled a pleasant odor of cooking, and com¬ 
ing out into a little clearing in the woods 
where a fire was burning, they found dozens 
of chubby little Waffle-Wimps dancing hand in 
hand around it. The Waffle-Wimps were 
square and flat, with little square holes all over 
their plump little bodies. They kept dancing 
closer and closer to the flames until they grew 
crisp and brown and very hot. Then they all 

[ 29 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


ran off sizzling and chuckling, each one crawl¬ 
ing under a marvelously sweet Syrup-Bush, 
where he lay down on his back and let the bush 
drip delicious maple syrup on him until he was 
just prime for eating. The children ate all the 
Waffle-Wimps they could hold, then they said, 
“Thank You,” to the ones they left behind, 
and went on. 

They had a wonderful time getting ac¬ 
quainted with all the strange and marvelous 
creatures that lived on the island, but at last 
it began to get darker and cooler in the woods 
and they heard the Tick-Tock bird calling, 
“Five o’clock! Five o’clock!” so they ran back 
obediently to Old Flipperoo, who opened one 
eye at them sleepily and asked, “Did you see 
everything on the island?” 

“Oh, yes! Everything! And we loved it!” 
cried the children. So Flipperoo promised to 
bring them again, and crawled lazily back into 
the water, preparatory to carrying them home. 
Whoops and Putty-Nose, who were very tired 
by this time, climbed on his back under 
their Robinson Crusoe tent and lay down. 
They fell fast asleep, and never woke up until 
[ 30 ] 


THE VOYAGE TO NO-SUCH LAND 


they heard their mother calling to them from 
the shore. You can guess how surprised she 
was to see them come sailing home on Old 
Flipperoo’s back, and to hear all about the 
delights and wonders of their voyage to No- 
Such Land. 


[31] 




































SQUEEDINKS AND 
THE COD LIVER OIL 

























Squeedinks and the Cod Liver Oil 

His real name was Ferdinand Maxwell 
Higginson, but his friend Mops, the hired man, 
always called him Squeedinks—and as we are 
all going to be his friends—we may as well call 
him Squeedinks, too. He lived with his aunt in 
a pretty little house ’way out in the country, 
set between rolling green fields and a large 
forest. Squeedinks used to read all sorts of 
books, but he liked stories about animals best 
of all. When he grew tired of reading he 
would go out into the forest and watch the 
squirrels frisking about among the old trees. 
He noticed that most of the squirrels lived in 
holes in the big oaks, and he was extremely 
anxious to get a look into the holes and see 
just how squirrels behaved when they were at 
home. 

After a great many unsuccessful attempts, 
Squeedinks at last succeeded in climbing part 
way up a big oak tree. He couldn’t get quite 
as far up as the little round holes where he 
saw his furry friends darting in and out, but 

[ 35 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


he was delighted to find one hole, low down 
on the trunk, which was just big enough for 
him to squeeze into. You see, he was just a 
small little boy. Every day, after that, Squee- 
dinks climbed up to his lookout, which he 
christened the “Crow’s Nest,” and sat there 
with just his head peeping out, watching the 
antics of the squirrels. 

The squirrels would dash past Squeedinks, 
chattering as if they were trying to tell him 
something, and then scamper off home with a 
great clatter and racket, looking down at the 
little boy with their big, bright eyes. Squee¬ 
dinks always brought something for the 
squirrels to eat, and it wasn’t long before they 
grew quite friendly. He invented names for 
the ones he knew best, and tried hard to teach 
them to answer when he called. 

One day Squeedinks heard his aunt talking 
to the Doctor about him. She was worried 
because he was so small, and the Doctor said 
that he ought to take Cod Liver Oil to make 
him grow. So that afternoon his aunt sent 
him down to the village to buy a bottle. On 
the way back from the village he came through 
[361 





mm 


1 Never Did Think This Tree Was Dig Enough 















































































































SQUEEDINKS & THE COD LIVER OIL 


the forest, and decided he would climb up into 
the Crow’s Nest for a while. He placed the 
bottle of Cod Liver Oil carefully on the 
groulnd, and was soon tucked ’way up among 
the leaves in his favorite lookout. As he sat 
there, Squeedinks thought about the Cod Liver 
Oil, and began to wonder if it would make 
other things grow as well as little boys. He 
leaned out of the hole to see if the bottle was 
safe, and what do you think he saw? A funny 
little brown man, not much taller than Squee¬ 
dinks’ fox-terrior, Snarlyrow, was looking at 
the bottle! Squeedinks heard him say to him¬ 
self, “H’m! Cod Liver Oil, eh? WeU, I never 
did think this tree was quite big enough for 
its age!” And with that, he uncorked the 
bottle, poured its contents on the roots of the 
tree, and disappeared into the depths of the 
forest whistling a funny tune. 

Squeedinks was thinking that that was a 
very strange thing to do, when he began to 
feel rather queer. He felt as if he were going 
up in an elevator, and the hole he was wedged 
into grew larger and larger until it was as 
big as a little room. He poked out his head 

[ 37 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


and looked down, and found that he could see 
nothing but the green tops of the other trees, 
far, far below him. What could be happen¬ 
ing? He knew! His tree was starting to 
grow—the Cod Liver Oil had begun to work! 
The tree grew so fast that in a few minutes 
he could scarcely see the forest, or the roof of 
his home nearby. The leaves of his tree grew 
as big as bed quilts, and all the squirrel holes 
were large enough for a small boy to live in. 

It all seemed just like a fairy tale, and 
Squeedinks became wildly excited. He could 
now stand erect and walk about inside the 
Crow’s Nest, and just here he noticed that the 
big tree had a hollow center, and that this 
hollow ran all the way up, just like a chimney. 
He started to climb up the inside of the tree, 
and quite unexpectedly found himself in the 
front parlor of old Umbrella-Tail, a big gray 
squirrel. All the squirrels were just as amazed 
as Squeedinks at finding their homes grown 
suddenly large and roomy, and they were all 
chattering excitedly together. Squeedinks was 
greatly surprised to find that he could under¬ 
stand everything the squirrels said. Mrs. 
[ 38 ] 


SQUEEDINKS & THE COD LIVER OIL 


Umbrella-Tail was saying, “Weill If you 
expect me to keep house in this enormous 
place you’ll just have to get little Nutty Red 
squirrel for a servant! And that’s that!” 
Then they all saw Squeedinks, and asked him 
how he had got there. When he told them, 
they said that they had always used the inside 
of the tree for a stairway, but it had never 
before been big enough for a boy to get 
through, and they had felt safe from molesta¬ 
tion. Squeedinks assured them that he loved 
squirrels and, indeed, all the animals that lived 
in the woods, and wouldn’t hurt them for the 
world. And now he only wanted to get down 
and go home, for it was getting dark. 

Old Umbrella-Tail said he would show him 
the way, and started down inside the hollow 
tree. Squeedinks followed more slowly, for it 
was as black as ink in there. Finally they dis¬ 
covered they couldn’t go any farther, and then 
found they were inside of one of the tree’s 
great roots, way down under the ground. 
Then Squeedinks despaired of ever seeing his 
home again, but Umbrella-Tail nosed about 
and discovered an opening in the end of the 

[ 39 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


root, through which they could see a dark 
tunnel leading away through the moist earth. 
But they were afraid to follow it for they 
didn’t know where it led, and were just 
about to turn back in despair, when they heard 
something thumping along with dull, rhythmic 
bumps. It turned out to be old Grandfather 
Mole, who lived down there. He was quite 
blind, and had to walk with a cane, but his 
front feet were big and strong, with sharp 
little claws to help him dig his tunnels here 
and there and everywhere under the ground. 
When Grandfather Mole learned that Um¬ 
brella-Tail was trying to get Squeedinks home 
in time for supper, he turned slowly around 
in his tunnel, handed the little boy a flashlight 
out of his vest pocket, and called out in a deep 
bass voice that sounded very much as if the 
damp earth had given him chronic bronchitis, 
“Follow me!” So Squeedinks bade Umbrella- 
Tail good-bye, and started to wriggle along 
the tunnel on his stomach behind Grandfather 
Mole. In a marvelously short time they came 
out into the air, and Squeedinks was delighted 
to find himself at home underneath his own 
140 ] 


SQUEEDINKS & THE COD LIVER OIL 


front porch. He thanked Grandfather Mole 
politely for leading him safely home, and 
watched the old fellow disappear down his 
tunnel again. Then Squeedinks ran into the 
house and told his aunt all that had happened 
to him, and what strange things the Cod Liver 
Oil had accomplished. 


141 ] 







































TOM 

NOW-YOU-SEE-HIM- 

NOW-YOU-DON’T 











Tom Now-You-See-Him-Now-You-Don’t 

It was a cold, snowy day just before the 
Christmas holidays, and little Tom was stand¬ 
ing near one of the shop windows, gazing 
longingly in at the beautiful gay toys. He 
was wondering whether he would find the won¬ 
derful red sled, shining skates and bright, 
brisk-looking wagon under his tree on Christ¬ 
mas morning, or if Santa Claus would hold 
it against him that he had been naughty in 
refusing, at first, to take his cough medicine, 
and pass him by without leaving him any gifts 
at all. Of course, he had taken the medicine 
later, when his mother had insisted. But he 
had heard that Santa Claus sometimes punished 
children when they refused to obey promptly. 

While he was pondering over this, selecting 
the gifts he would like best and hoping to be 
forgiven for his naughtiness, a huge snowball 
sang by his head and crashed through the great 
glass window. He turned quickly, in time to 
see his playmate, Teddy, disappear around the 
corner. Just then he felt strong hands grasp 

[451 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


his coat collar roughly and heard an angry 
policeman exclaim, “That’s the time I caught 
you!” 

Poor Tom! He knew that Teddy had 
thrown the snowball, but he didn’t want to be 
a tattle-tale, so he allowed himself to be hauled 
away to the nearest jail. He was thrust into 
a dark cell, not much larger than a clothes 
closet, where he trembled with the cold and 
dampness, utterly heart-broken over his sad 
plight. Trying to be brave, he forced back the 
tears, and settled down to wait until his father 
should come to his rescue. 

Suddenly he saw a great cloud of smoke 
rising from one corner of his cell. It circled 
’round and ’round until it disappeared into 
thin air, leaving behind a tiny brown elf, who 
stood blinking knowingly at him and nodding 
his head like a wise little old man. Now Tom 
had often heard of goblins and fairies and 
wished that he might know them, so he smiled 
at his little visitor, told him how glad he was 
to see him and began to relate to him the 
story of his misfortune. “Yes, Tom,” said the 
little elf, “I know all about your troubles, and 
[ 46 ] 


TOM NOW-YOU-SEE-HIM 

because you have been a good, honest lad I am 
willing to grant any wish you may make.” 
This was jolly good luck for Tom, and he 
laughed to think how worried he had been a 
few short moments ago, and how the little 
brQwn elf had transformed all his sorrow into 
wonderful joy. 

“O dear Mr. Fairy, what I want most of 
all in the world is the power to become invisi¬ 
ble,” cried Tom. “I have always wished that 
I could make myself invisible whenever I 
wanted to do so.” 

Now the little brown elf thought this a most 
unusual wish, but he told Tom he would grant 
it for one day, and instantly Tom felt a sudden 
gust of air and found himself entirely alone. 
Just then he heard the turnkey coming with 
his bread and water and he hurriedly wished 
himself invisible, and when the door was 
opened he walked right out of his cell between 
the big man’s bow legs! He chuckled in glee 
to himself when he saw the turnkey looking 
all about for him, not being able to find him any¬ 
where, and then he set about finding his way to 
the street. 


[471 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


On his way home Tom passed a lake that 
the frost had converted into a solid sheet of 
gleaming ice, where all the boys and girls were 
skating. He spied a pair of skates lying on 
the bank, and quick as a thought, he had them 
on his feet and had darted off across the ice. 
There were loud shouts of surprise from every¬ 
one, and he saw all the boys and girls looking 
after him in amazement. Of course, all they 
could see was the skates, which they thought 
must have been bewitched to go skating off 
by themselves. A dozen boys set out in pur¬ 
suit of them, and Tom quite enjoyed the sport 
of eluding them. Teddy, who was in the crowd, 
almost caught up with him, but, hearing a 
voice that seemed to come from the skates 
themselves, saying, “You know you broke the 
window!” he became so frightened that he 
stumbled and fell, slithered over the thin ice 
around a “Danger” sign, broke through and 
plunged headlong into the cold water. 

Before the other boys and girls could reach 
him, Invisible Tom had pulled him out. When 
Teddy felt hands helping him out but could 
see no one, he cried aloud in fear, but Tom 
[ 48 ] 



All They Could See Was the Skates 







































































































































TOM NOW-YOU-SEE-HIM 


just chuckled to himself and glided off, quite 
satisfied with his first adventure. By this time 
he was tired of skating, so, leaving the skates 
where he had found them, he went merrily 
and invisibly on his way. 

A poor little homeless dog whose leg had 
been injured by a passing truck was limping 
painfully along ahead of Tom, and at last 
tumbled into a pathetic little heap, unable to 
drag himself further. A rough boy, whom 
Tom did not know, came by just at that mo¬ 
ment and began tormenting the poor little 
animal. ’Twas then Tom thought he could 
have some fun by befriending the dog and play¬ 
ing a trick on the boy. So he dashed over, 
picked the dog up in his invisible arms, and 
carried him safely down the street. When he 
looked back and saw the boy standing with his 
mouth wide open in amazement at seeing a 
dog floating away in the air, he laughed aloud. 
This was indeed great fun! Tom went out 
of his way to pass the Dog Hospital, where 
he dropped his little charge carefully in through 
an open window just high enough from the 
ground for him to reach. 


[ 49 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


Then Tom went on his invisible way. Soon 
he arrived in front of Betty Brown’s house, 
where he heard sounds of laughter and music, 
reminding him that she was giving a party 
and that he had been invited. He looked down 
at himself. He had on his oldest suit, and he 
knew he hadn’t time to go home to dress, so 
he decided to attend the party as Invisible 
Tom. The guests were just eating ice cream 
and cake as Tom entered and he watched until 
he saw the maid put down a big plate of choco¬ 
late ice cream in front of Billy Bon. Before 
Billy had a chance to notice it, Tom reached 
out and snatched the dish, vanishing with it 
behind the piano. Betty’s mother, the hostess, 
was surprised to find that Billy had no ice 
cream, and brought him another plate, but 
Tom had eaten the first one quickly, and was 
already standing invisible beside Billy’s chair, 
waiting to play the trick again. This practical 
joke was repeated several times, and poor Billy 
might have gone ice cream-less if Tom had not 
reached the very limit of his capacity at last. 

During the games which followed refresh¬ 
ments, Tom played many pranks on his little 
[ 50 ] 


TOM NOW-YOU-SEE-HIM 


friends and then, politely saying good-bye to 
Betty, who started at hearing a voice when she 
couldn’t see anyone near, he skipped out the 
door. 

As it was now getting late, Tom knew he 
had better hurry on home. He had enjoyed 
being invisible so much that he decided to 
remain that way as a surprise for his Mother 
and Daddy. Upon reaching the house he saw 
an enormous airplane, which had landed in a 
field near his home and which was about to 
take flight. Tom saw that it was piloted by a 
famous aviator of whom he had often heard 
his father talk, and he could not resist the temp¬ 
tation of climbing invisibly in beside him. 
Instantly there was a great roar, and they 
were off up into the clouds, with Tom leaning 
over the side of the plane to see the cities below, 
which looked very tiny and very far away. 
This was the greatest experience that Tom had 
ever had, and in his excitement he forgot that 
the aviator couldn’t see him, and shouted in 
his ear, “Let’s go call on the Man in the 
Moon!’’ This startled the aviator so that he 
lost control of the plane, which shot toward 


[ 51 ] 


TOM NOW-YOU-SEE-HIM 


earth, twisting and turning in its terrible fall. 

Over and over it went, with Tom clinging 
to his seat with all his might, when all of a 
sudden he lost his grip, and the next thing he 
knew he had landed flop! in the middle of a 
big, soft snowbank. A kindly old farmer who 
was traveling along on the road nearby, hur¬ 
ried to him, picked him up and offered to take 
him home in his mulecart. 

“O what a day!” thought Tom, and in his 
heart he thanked the little elf for all his 
thrilling adventures. 


[521 


COLETTE, 

THE LITTLE DANCING GIRL 



> 

















Colette, the Little Dancing Girl 

Far away in a distant city where all the 
people love music and dancing, there was a 
hurdy-gurdy man whom all the children knew 
as Uncle Antoine. Uncle Antoine had a pet 
monkey called Monko, who went with him 
every day on his round of music-making. 
One day, when the sun was shining brightly, 
they chanced upon a pretty little blue-eyed 
girl with golden curls, who was sitting on a 
doorstep weeping. When Uncle Antoine asked 
her why she was crying so bitterly, she replied 
that she was all alone in the world and had 
no place to live. Poor Uncle Antoine had a 
great, big heart and he felt very sorry for her, 
so he told her that he would be her uncle and 
that she might join him and Monko. 

Now Colette, for that was the little girl’s 
name, was as good as she was pretty, and when 
she found someone to love her and look after 
her, she proceeded to dance for joy. A crowd 
soon gathered, and everyone was so enchanted 
with the music and the dancing that they 

[551 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


threw shining heaps of gold pennies into 
Monko’s cup. At the end of the day they had 
collected more gold pennies than Uncle Antoine 
had ever seen in his life before, and the three 
partners dreamed dreams of a beautiful future, 
where pennies would be so plentiful that they 
could afford to buy a nice little house of their 
very own and live happily ever after. 

So each night found Uncle Antoine, Colette, 
and Monko ’way off in the country falling 
asleep under some nice big tree, tired but happy 
in their dreams of the future. And every 
morning they were awakened by little leaves 
fluttering down upon their faces, and by the 
chirping of the tiny birds above them. One 
day Colette suggested going to the Zoo to 
entertain the people who were watching the 
animals, and since Uncle Antoine and Monko 
were always ready to please her, they hurried 
across the city, pushing the big hurdy-gurdy 
before them. 

When they arrived at the Zoo they found 
that great crowds were there before them, and 
when Uncle Antoine started to play and Colette 
to dance, not only did the boys and girls and 
[ 56 ] 



mm 


V:VV ‘ r £ *'■■ ' 






•m.v.% yu / 

r'J 




Only a Tiny Bunch of Whiskers Remained 





































































































































COLETTE, LITTLE DANCING GIRL 


grown-ups turn to look and listen, but all the 
animals began to cut capers. The monkeys 
started to two-step, and one old Grandfather 
Ape did a loop-the-loop of joy. Old Leo Lion 
whistled the Star Spangled Banner and the 
big clumsy elephants sang Yankee Doodle all 
at the same time; old Uncle Hippopotamus 
humped about his cage, trying his best to 
waltz. 

Little Colette danced as she had never 
danced before, with her lovely golden curls 
flying in the breeze. Monko dashed around 
through the crowd at a great rate, not know¬ 
ing what to make of the heavy silver dollars 
that rattled merrily in his cup, taking the 
places of the usual pennies. He emptied his 
cup so often at Uncle Antoine’s feet that very 
soon the hurdy-gurdy was surrounded by enor¬ 
mous piles of gleaming silver dollars and when 
it was dark, and all the people had hurried 
home to their dinners, laughing and chattering 
about their wonderful afternoon, Uncle An¬ 
toine, Colette, and Monko were left behind 
with so much money that they had to borrow 
an elephant from the Keeper of the Zoo, strap 

[ 57 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 

a trunk on his broad back, and carry it all 
away. 

At last their dreams of wealth had come 
true, and they set out in search of a little 
house. They found a dear little vine-covered 
cottage surrounded by shrubs and kindly trees 
like the ones that had sheltered them in their 
poverty. Colette had lots of fun making cur¬ 
tains and preparing dinner for Uncle Antoine 
and Monko, but the three friends missed their 
old life. They missed it so sadly that at last 
they decided that they would be happier if they 
were still giving happiness to others, so they 
began a round of visits to the orphan asylums 
and the hospitals, and played and danced for 
the poor little children and the sick and dis¬ 
tressed. 

One day while Colette was busily planting 
seeds in her tiny garden, Prince Charming rode 
by that way on his splendid white horse, and 
he was so struck with her beauty and goodness 
that he asked her to marry him on the spot 
and become the Princess of his marvelous 
castle. 

Now Prince Charming was a wonderful 
[ 58 ] 


COLETTE, LITTLE DANCING GIRL 

Prince and Colette loved him, but she couldn’t 
bear to leave her good Uncle Antoine and 
Monko, who had befriended her when she was 
sad and lonely. So she shook her head and told 
the Prince that she must remain in the cottage 
and watch over her family. Whereupon the 
Prince laughed, and replied that his palace was 
large enough for fifty families, and that he 
would love hers as she did and look after them 
always. And so there was a big wedding, with 
Colette the most beautiful little bride in all 
the world, dressed in glistening white satin 
and creamy lace and carrying a huge bouquet 
of the most exquisite flowers. And Prince 
Charming was the handsomest groom imagin¬ 
able, in his uniform of gold and white. Then, 
as soon as the ceremony was over, Colette, 
Uncle Antoine and Monko all moved into the 
Prince’s castle. It was a big, white castle, built 
entirely of gleaming marble, with fountains 
of diamonds and rubies playing in the midst 
of gardens of rare flowers and trees so large 
that they reached right up into the sky. 

Uncle Antoine was the proudest and hap¬ 
piest man alive, for the Prince had given him 

[ 59 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


a brand new hurdy-gurdy which played every 
tune that had ever been composed, and had 
brought tears of joy into the old man’s eyes 
by telling him that he might spend all his time 
in the garden, playing his music, watching the 
flowers, and listening to the birds, of which 
there were millions, so tame that they would 
sing any song you requested of them, and perch 
on your hand to be fed. Monko was given all 
the peanuts he could possibly eat, a whole grove 
of cocoanut trees, and best of all, a kiddy-car 
on which he could ride all over the grounds. 

In the midst of all this glory they lived 
very happily until Uncle Antoine grew to be 
an old, old man, and Monko acquired a long, 
white beard, which trailed behind him for 
some three blocks. In fact, his beard was so 
very long that when he went out walking with 
the Princess Colette it looked like the train 
of her gown. One day, when Uncle Antoine 
and the Prince and Princess were all sitting 
out in the garden listening to a large black 
crow singing Mammy’s Little Coal-Black Rose, 
they heard cries of anguish from high up 
among the trees. They discovered that Monko’s 
[ 60 ] 


COLETTE, LITTLE DANCING GIRL 


beard had become twisted around a tree trunk, 
and that in trying to scramble down he had 
jerked so hard that he had pulled out all but 
a tiny little bunch of white whiskers. Poor, 
poor Monko! He was terribly distressed, until 
Colette assured him that his beard would grow 
again, or, if it did not, she would paste the old 
one on with molasses and he would be as hand¬ 
some as ever. 

So you see, because little Colette and Uncle 
Antoine and Monko had always done their 
very best to make everyone about them as 
happy as they could, they were allowed to 
spend the rest of their days in the beautiful 
palace with the good Prince. 


[ 61 ] 


JERRY AND 
THE WISHING-RING 


Jerry and the Wishing-Ring 

Jerry was a handsome little boy, and had 
just celebrated his fifth birthday. His Uncle 
Jack, who was a Naval Officer on one of Uncle 
Sam’s battleships, was expected home from a 
trip around the world, and Jerry was so 
thrilled and excited that he could scarcely wait 
for the actual time to arrive. He remembered 
sitting on his Uncle Jack’s knee when he was 
a wee little chap, listening to stories of the sea, 
and he had not forgotten his Uncle’s promise 
to take him on a voyage when he was five years 
old. And then one day he heard the old 
familiar whistle sounding on the garden walk 
and, sure enough, there was his big Uncle look¬ 
ing brown and strong, greeting them all with 
smiles and kisses. He was to be home for just 
one day, but that was time enough to have 
Jerry fitted out with a smart sailor suit and 
made ready to take the next trip with him. 
Jerry had never known so much excitement, 
and when he bade good-bye to his mother and 
daddy and went aboard the battleship there was 

[ 65 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 

not a prouder or happier boy in the whole 
world. 

It didn’t take him long to make friends 
with the men aboard, and to learn about the 
big guns and all the other fascinating things. 
There was one huge sailor named Jim Seaweed 
to whom Jerry was devoted because he was not 
only the best boxer but the strongest man 
on the ship. On the second day, when they 
were far out at sea, Jerry came on deck just 
in time to see old Billy Goat, who belonged to 
his friend Jim and was also the ship’s mascot, 
thrown from his feet by the lurching of the 
vessel, and start sliding toward the rail, over¬ 
board. Jerry dashed across the deck in a great 
hurry, seized old Billy by his horns, braced his 
feet against the rail and held him firmly until 
some sailors came to their rescue. Jim Seaweed 
was immediately informed of Jerry’s deed and 
quick wit, and was so grateful to him for 
saving his pet that he gave Jerry a wonderful 
ring which had been a gift to him from a 
Persian king. He explained that it was a wish¬ 
ing ring, with the wonderful power to bring 
true your every wish. 

[ 66 ] 


JERRY AND THE WISHING-RING 


Soon the ship was sailing far away through 
tropical waters, and Uncle Jack gave orders to 
anchor. In the distance they could see a group 
of little islands set like tiny jewels in the blue 
sea, and a party of sailors got permission to 
take Jerry and go ashore in a small boat, to 
explore. When they landed they found quan¬ 
tities of tropical fruits and birds, but no signs 
of human life. Tired of the company of the 
others, Jerry set off by himself through a 
wooded stretch, and had gone some distance 
when he suddenly beheld a beautiful little girl 
standing in the doorway of a tiny hut. Her 
clothes were tattered and torn, but her hair 
was the color of spun gold and her eyes were 
the loveliest he had ever seen. She smiled at 
Jerry and told him her name was Pam, and 
that she had been shipwrecked and cast ashore 
on this deserted island. 

It was then Jerry thought of the wishing- 
ring on his finger, so taking hold of it he said, 
“Wishing-ring! Wishing-ring! Please dress 
Pam in the clothes of a princess and change 
her hut into a lovely palace!” 

It was no sooner said than done, and both 

[ 67 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


children danced for joy at the transformation. 
Pam’s clothes were of silk and lace, and the 
palace was of white marble, complete with 
everything the heart could wish. Then it was 
that Jerry learned that Pam was indeed a real 
princess, who had been taking a trip with her 
governess when they were shipwrecked, and 
that her father and mother believed she had 
drowned. 

By this time the sailors had joined them, 
and stood blinking their eyes in astonishment 
at the wonderful sight. Jerry told them that 
he liked the island and intended to remain 
there for a while. He sent word back to Uncle 
Jack on the ship that they should sail without 
him, as the wishing-ring would take good care 
of him. 

Pam and Jerry waved good-bye to the big 
ship as it sailed away, and then turned about 
to make a complete tour of their island home. 
It was indeed an island of wonders, full of 
strange and wonderful beasts and flowers and 
fruits. They tied knots in the giraffes’ necks, 
and taught the ostriches to prance around the 


[ 68 ] 



The Savages Ran in Terror 
















































JERRY AND THE WISHING-RING 


island drawing the beautiful chariot which the 
good old wishing-ring had brought them. 

One day when Jerry was up in the tower 
of the palace looking out over the ocean he 
heard Pam calling, “Jerry 1 Jerry! Come 
quickly and save me! Some savages have just 
landed on our island!” 

Jerry was down in a jiffy, to find that their 
castle was being besieged by a band of canni¬ 
bals from a nearby island. Thinking fast, he 
wished on his ring that he might be turned 
into an enormous elephant with three long 
trunks. Instantly, his wish was granted, and 
the savages ran for their canoes in terror as 
they saw this terrible animal charging at them, 
shooting streams of water in their faces from 
one trunk, followed by clouds of sand from the 
second trunk, and succeeded by mammoth rocks 
from the third. All this was great fun for our 
two little friends, and when Jerry changed 
back into himself, he and Pam laughed with 
glee to think of how easily they had routed 
the enemy. 

They lived a life of perfect happiness on 
their island, until Pam began to show signs 

[ 69 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


of homesickness for her father and mother, 
and then Jerry decided to take her back home. 
They discussed ways and means, and at last 
agreed that an airplane would be the best thing 
to wish for. Jerry had traveled over land and 
sea but until now he had never flown through 
the air. When his wish for the airplane had 
been granted and they were about to set forth 
on their journey to the kingdom of Pam’s 
father, there were tears in their eyes at the 
thought of leaving their fairyland. 

It didn’t take them long to reach Pam’s 
home, and when they landed the people went 
crazy with joy at seeing their own little lost 
Princess again. There was a great celebration 
in honor of her safe return, and the King and 
Queen were so grateful to Jerry for bringing 
back their daughter that they made him a 
Prince. Then Jerry wished hard for his own 
father and mother, who instantly appeared and 
lived with him in his kingdom until he grew 
to be a man. 

In time he married the Princess Pam, and 
they decided that they would be happiest back 
on their dear little island. So they sailed back 

[ 70 ] 


JERRY AND THE WISHING-RING 


in a big ship with scores of their friends, and 
there they reigned as King and Queen, living 
happily for the rest of their lives. 


[ 71 ] 























PATSY ANN 



IN BIRDLAND 





























Patsy Ann in Birdland 

Patsy Ann was a quiet child, who never 
romped with other children, but loved to roam 
around her own garden looking at the flowers 
and birds. Even as a tiny child, her nurse had 
noticed how readily she made friends with the 
little robins and bluebirds that lived in their 
beautiful gardens in the spring and summer. 
At the age of seven Patsy Ann had lost none 
of her fondness for birds. She spent hours 
going about with crumbs, calling to them in 
her sweet little voice, and smiling with happi¬ 
ness when they fluttered down to eat out of 
her hand. She never found it necessary to 
carry salt to sprinkle on their tails in order to 
catch them, but was so gentle and kind that 
the birds were always glad to fly to her. 

One day, when Patsy Ann was out walking 
with her nurse, they passed by a dense forest. 
Her nurse explained that it was supposed to 
be enchanted, because of strange sounds that 
could be heard coming from its depths, and 
that no one ever walked through it. The bright 

[ 75 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


eyes of little Patsy Ann grew big with wonder 
as she listened, and when Nursie stopped to 
chat with a friend she stood staring curiously 
in among the big trees. Then Nursie started 
off down the road, thinking Patsy Ann was 
walking by her side. After a while she turned 
to speak to the child and lo! she was nowhere 
to be found. The poor nurse was frightened, 
and started frantically to call, “Patsy Ann! 
Patsy Ann!” 

All this time Patsy Ann had been standing 
just where Nursie had left her, staring into 
the forest. Hearing her name called, she 
turned to look for Nurse, but could see her 
nowhere. The cries of “Patsy Ann” grew 
louder, and seemed to be issuing from the very 
heart of the woods. “O what fun!” she 
thought, “Nursie has gone into the forest, and 
now I can follow her!” 

As she went up the path between the big 
trees the calls of “Patsy Ann” came nearer 
and nearer, and she was thinking that her nurse 
must be close by, when she came upon an enor¬ 
mous, brilliantly-colored parrot, and she burst 
into laughter as she realized that it was the big 
176 ] 


o o 



A Queer Bird Flew Close to Patsy Ann 

































































































































PATSY ANN IN BIRDLAND 


bird that had been calling her. “O Pollyl” 
said Patsy Ann, “have you seen my nurse? 
I thought it was she who was calling me!” 

The parrot had heard the calls of the 
nurse, and had been mimicking them, so he 
only blinked very wisely and told Patsy Ann 
that her nurse was searching for her, up and 
down the road, very much worried because she 
could not find her. He went on to say, “Of 
course, you must obey your nurse, but I know 
you love birds, and this forest is full of the 
strangest ones you ever saw. We can send a 
note to Nursie by the Carrier Pigeon, asking 
her please to wait while I show you Birdland.” 

Patsy Ann was delighted with this idea, and 
she watched the parrot, fascinated, as he picked 
up a large, dry leaf and whistled for the Foun¬ 
tain Pen Bird. A little black bird with a shiny 
gold bill appeared instantly, and flew right 
into her hand. The parrot told her to hold 
him just like a fountain pen and write on the 
leaf with his bill. She thought this very funny, 
but did exactly as she was told, and sure enough, 
she was able to write with him just as if she 
was sitting at home at her own little desk. In 

[ 77 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


a few minutes she was watching the Carrier 
Pigeon fly away to Nursie with the note 
wrapped around his leg. 

Patsy Ann and the parrot then started off 
to see the sights. First they came to an enor¬ 
mous tree and the parrot asked Patsy Ann if 
she could see anything in it. When she an¬ 
swered, “No, Polly,” he handed her a pair of 
amber glasses to put on, and immediately the 
tree appeared full of Fluttering Kafouts, which, 
he explained, were quite colorless and invisible 
to the naked eye. Then they passed over a 
brook where a Submarine Bird was just about 
to submerge, but when he saw Patsy Ann he 
said, “I know what you’d like!” and dove ’way 
down into the clear water, coming up with a 
bright red balloon in his beak, which he gave 
to her. 

Just then she heard someone calling, “Cream 
of Wheat! Cream of Wheat!” and wondered 
whatever it could be. Polly told her it was 
the Breakfast Bird, who would not only bring 
you Cream of Wheat, but eggs in every style. 
If you whistled once you got a soft-boiled egg, 
if you whistled twice you got a hard-boiled egg, 
[ 78 ] 


PATSY ANN IN BIRDLAND 


and if you turned a somersault he knew you 
wanted them scrambled. Patsy Ann was feel¬ 
ing a bit hungry, so she whistled twice, just to 
see if what Polly said would really happen. 
Sure enough—a queer-looking bird flew close 
to her and dropped a nice hard-boiled egg right 
into her outspread apron. 

While she was walking along eating it, the 
parrot stopped to call her attention to a ragged 
little fellow, which he told her was the famous 
Early Bird. It was wearing an old, tattered 
overcoat with dozens of pockets, and every 
pocket was overflowing with worms. He was 
always the first bird up in the morning, and 
that was why he was able to catch so many 
worms. 

Most of these birds were perfect strangers 
to Patsy Ann, and she was wondering what 
funny thing would happen next. It happened 
to be the Fizzwikle, who flew about her and 
made her very thirsty indeed by sounding his 
fizzy note, which was just like the noise made 
by a soda water fountain. 

This was all very interesting, and Patsy 
Ann would have loved to spend the entire day 

[ 79 ] 


BUMPS AND HIS BUDDIES 


among these strange creatures, but she knew 
she must hurry back to her nurse. The parrot 
said he would send her back by the Flivver 
Bird. He called “Taxi! Taxi!” just as loud 
as he could, and instantly there was a terrible 
rattle-te-banging in the air above them and the 
Flivver Bird landed in front of them. He was 
the biggest bird Patsy Ann had ever seen. His 
wings seemed to be made from pieces of old 
tin roofs, which rattled when he flew, and he 
had a terrible cough. The parrot helped her 
get onto the bird’s back, and politely invited 
her to come again. They were off before she 
was able to thank him, and the ride through 
the woods was noisy and exciting. When they 
reached the road she slid off the bird’s back 
and ran into her nurse’s outstretched arms, 
pouring out the story of her wonderful visit 
to Birdland. 


[ 80 ] 
















S'. 















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